Tag: Sermons

The Man Who Got It

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In this second-to-last installment of our series, Hard Sayings, we wrestled with the power of the cross.  Just how big is the grace Jesus won for us there?  It can save a normal sinner, sure, but can it save the worst of them?  We’re actually faced with a harder question here: Do we want it to?  Is Jesus’ offer of life to anyone fair?  Keep reading to see the answer.

 

The Man Who Got It

Do you remember your parents ever doing something for your brother or sister that they did not do for you?  What was your immediate complaint?  That’s not fair!  Actually, you probably said it with a bit more…emotion in your voice.  That’s not faaaaaaiiiir!!!  Worse yet, do you remember your brother or sister or cousin or a friend or, really, just about anyone, getting something you were convinced in your heart of hearts they didn’t deserve?  What did you say then?  About the same thing: “That’s not fair!” Read the rest…

Knowing Jesus

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This week we got back on track with our series, Hard Sayings.  One of the things Jesus made fairly abundantly clear over the course of His ministry is that following Him isn’t something to which we can get by with giving merely a cheap lip-service.  The hard saying we examined together yesterday morning makes this even clearer than most.  Too often we rely on serving Jesus to cover up for not knowing Him well.  That won’t cut it.  Keep reading to see why.

 

Knowing Jesus

Think back with me for a minute to your bedroom growing up.  What kind of stuff did you have in it?  Specifically, whose poster did you have on your wall?  Was it an actor?  A musician?  A sports star?  Who was it?  How much did you know about this person?  Were you a casual fan or a full-blown disciple in the model of the Beliebers?  It is not at all uncommon for young people to have someone they idolize.  A lot of young, aspiring basketball players today want to be the next Steph Curry.  Baseball players look up to Aaron Judge—literally, since he’s a giant.  Singers want to be the next Arianna Grande or Miranda Lambert or Taylor Swift. Read the rest…

Game On

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This week we took a break from our series, Hard Sayings.  With our Vacation Bible School starting last night, we took a few minutes to get a preview of what the kids will be studying all week long.  When it comes to the task of advancing the kingdom of God in this world, our Lord does not leave us unequipped for the work.  He has provided us everything we need and then some.  Keep reading to learn how.

 

Game On

Well, this morning we are taking a brief break from our series, Hard Sayings, to talk about something else.  There are a couple of reasons for this.  First, I don’t know about you, but the past three weeks have been a bit bruising.  Not only that, but we’ve got some more challenging stuff in the weeks ahead of us.  Taking a bit of a breather will leave us refreshed and ready to engage further with some of the other hard things Jesus said.  There’s an even more pressing reason than that, though.  Tonight, begins our week-long marathon that is Vacation Bible School.  I’ve got to tell you: I’ve been looking forward to this for a long time.  I love VBS.  It gives me a chance every year to be a big kid…not that I’m not a big kid for most of the rest of the year, it just gives me a better excuse.  This week I get the pleasure of teaching the Bible study lessons to some of the older kids.  There’s just something fun about engaging with these guys and helping them understand the life-changing teachings of Jesus.  As fun as the Bible study lessons are this year, though, most of you are not going to get to be in on the action.  So, I wanted to give you a sneak-peak at what the kids are going to be learning in the days ahead. Read the rest…

Misplaced Anger

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In part three of our series, Hard Sayings, we look at Jesus’ hard assurance that if we stick with Him, the world is going to hate us.  This isn’t an easy truth to hear, but millions of Jesus followers around the world and in our own backyards can attest to the fact that it is true nonetheless.  Keep reading as we talk about why and what we can do about it.

 

Misplaced Anger

Have you ever held up someone as a hero only to have them fail you?  I’ve talked before about my being a Kansas basketball fan.  When I was growing up, Roy Williams was KU’s coach.  I idolized Roy Williams.  When I played basketball in grade school, I was convinced that I was going to play for Coach Roy someday.  I wrote him a letter to tell him about it and he sent back an autographed picture of the whole team.  I got to go to several KU games and watched with keen interest as Roy led team after team to victory. Read the rest…

Where Real Freedom Lies

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In this special Fourth of July edition, allow me to share my message from our community patriotic service this past Sunday evening.  Here, with the help of Jesus’ declaration of where real freedom lies, I talk about what freedom is and how we can preserve it for future generations.  Happy Fourth of July!

Where Real Freedom Lies

I have a confession to make: I love the Fourth of July.  Now, I don’t necessarily think I’m more patriotic than anybody else.  I think the reason I love the Fourth of July so much is because growing up my family always made such a big deal out of it.  We’d cook out.  We’d have friends over.  We’d enjoy hanging out with neighbors.  And we’d blow stuff up.  A lot of stuff.  That’s the real reason I love the Fourth of July: I love fireworks. Read the rest…